Viewing cable 09STATE41489, COTE D'IVOIRE: UN SECURITY COUNCIL CONSULTATIONS,

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UNCLAS STATE 041489 
 
SIPDIS 
PARIS FOR KANEDA 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL KPKO MARR IC
SUBJECT: COTE D'IVOIRE: UN SECURITY COUNCIL CONSULTATIONS, 
APRIL 28, 2009 
 
REF: STATE 3924 
 
¶1. USUN may draw on the points in paragraph 2 for the April 
28 Security Council consultations on UNOCI and the political 
situation in Cote d'Ivoire. Talking points on sanctions are 
also included. 
 
¶2. Begin points: 
 
--The United States welcomes Ambassador Choi, and thanks him 
for his briefing. We express our continuing support for the 
invaluable, tireless work being done by UNOCI personnel. I 
would like also to extend our thanks to President Compaore 
for his facilitation of the Ouagadougou Political Agreement. 
 
--The United States is disappointed that there has been no 
date set for the elections, which have been rescheduled 
several times. We are also concerned about the lack of 
sustained progress on disarmament. I repeat what we said in 
January: We urge the parties to set a realistic election 
date and make public the timeline of all the steps that must 
be taken to organize the election. The laying down of 
weapons and the technical preparations for the elections 
require cooperation from all sides, who have made repeated 
promises that they should keep. The Ivorian people surely 
expect this from their leaders. 
 
--We welcome plans for a sizeable number of international 
observers for the elections; their presence will support 
credible and transparent elections. 
 
--We welcome the relatively stable security situation and the 
steady, if slow, progress being made in extending the 
government's authority throughout the country. As the 
Secretary-General's recent report indicates, a great deal 
remains to be done, particularly with regard to law and 
order. Inadequate police staffing, shortages of court and 
prison personnel, and overcrowded prisons are all causes for 
concern. 
 
--We are also concerned about the reported proliferation of 
small arms, and would like additional information, with 
particular emphasis on any cross-border movement of weapons 
or armed persons. The reporting from UNOCI and UNMIL has 
been somewhat inconsistent on the extent to which this is a 
problem, despite coordinated patrols and exchanges of 
information between the two missions. We reiterate our call 
for all parties to cooperate with the impartial forces to 
ensure that any weapons surrendered by former combatants are 
controlled and inventoried. 
 
--The current sanctions regime for Cote d,Ivoire was created 
to address threats to peace and the national reconciliation 
process, and violations of human rights and international 
humanitarian law. 
 
--The regime is designed to provide an inducement for all the 
parties in Cote d,Ivoire, including its government, to move 
toward free and fair elections in as short a timeframe as 
possible. 
 
--For that reason, the United States will continue to support 
those sanctions until credible elections have taken place, 
steps have been taken to address arms trafficking, and 
additional measures have been implemented to increase fiscal 
transparency. 
 
--It is very troubling that there continue to be violations 
of the arms embargo, travel ban, assets freeze, and diamond 
ban. We urge all Member States, particularly Cote d,Ivoire 
and its neighbors, to comply with their UN obligations to 
implement these measures. 
 
-- The United States remains very concerned about continuing 
reports of rape and violence against women and girls. We 
welcome the efforts UNOCI is making to increase and 
strengthen the role of women in the police force, and to 
build and bolster the efforts of Ivorian women's 
organizations who are working to address these difficult 
issues. 
 
--The United States welcomes the detailed discussion of 
benchmarks and indicators of progress included as an annex to 
the Secretary-General's report. As he indicates, many of the 
factors contributing to the eventual conclusion of the 
Ivorian peace process are not within the UN's control. We 
agree wholeheartedly that the benchmarks should be 
periodically refined, adjusted and tested against a realistic 
assessment of the situation. 
 
--In particular, we believe the benchmarks laid out for 
measuring progress towards elections are clear, concrete and 
measurable. These are steps that should be achievable 
within a relatively short period of time, particularly in 
view of the extensive preparations that have already been 
made. 
 
--Quite a few of the steps laid out in the areas of 
disarmament, demobilization and reintegration (DDR), 
extension of state authority, and security sector reform are 
much harder to accomplish, longer-term, and more expensive. 
The Council should keep these areas under careful review to 
be sure that we have not tied ourselves, or the mission, to 
unattainable goals. 
CLINTON